As Peter Parker returns to life as pledges himself to the famous motto "with great power comes great responsibility"... except that's not the phrase he lives by, and it never was.
In a preview of Dan Slott, Mark Bagley, John Dell, Andrew Hennessy, Edgar Delgado and Joe Caramagna's Spider-Man #8, Spider-Man returns to his life saving New York's innocents. As he rescues civilians from a burning building, he reminds fans that he lives by the dictum "with great power there must also come great responsbility." As Peter points out, the phrase differs in meaning from the truncated version many people know. While the difference is subtle, it's meaningful - it's easy to read the shorter version as expecting the powerful not to abuse their abilities, but as Peter points out, his motto goes further - the phrase means that he can never walk away from a situation where his unique power can help. "I don't do what I can. I do what I must."
With Great Power...
The phrase first appeared in Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's Amazing Fantasy #15, with a final claiming "with great power there must also come - great responsibility!" This line was later attributed to Uncle Ben, and has appeared in adaptations such as Sam Raimi's Spider-Man, while being paraphrased in almost every other adaptation of the character. The phrase is on Peter's mind because - when reality was re-written as part of Spider-Man: End of the Spider-Verse - he lived a version of his life where Uncle Ben never died. Now, dragged back to reality, Spider-Man is more committed to his uncle's words than ever.
Spider-Man's Motto Is More Radical Than It Seems
"With great power comes great responsibility" is so common a mising of Spidey's motto that it's the more well-known phrase, and has even appeared in Marvel's own media. However, the distinction is worthwhile. The shorter phrase is easy to read as a form of noblesse oblige - the concept that privilege comes with certain social responsibilities. While this has some positive aspects, it has also been used to justify maintaining unjust social structures. "With great power there must also come great responsibility" more insistently makes the point that anyone who has power and refuses to act to benefit others is committing a misdeed. Uncle Ben's wise words suggest that the primary function of any power is to help those without it - the difference between a pleasant sentiment and a meaningful exhortation to live in service of others.
Uncle Ben Wasn't Talking About Superpowers
It's worth noting that when Uncle Ben speaks these words in various media, he's of course not referring to Peter's spider-powers (which he doesn't know about), but rather to his intellect and place in society. Ben knows that Peter will go on to do great things, but doesn't want him to become the type of person who sees himself as above others. This concept is core to what makes Spider-Man unique as a character, and has been adapted in countless ways. One of the great successes of the character's 2000s reinvention in Ultimate Spider-Man was using this idea to contrast Peter with his villains, each of who rejected this idea on a core level.
As Spider-Man enters a new era of his life - one in which he has a surprise new sidekick in Spider-Boy - Uncle Ben's words are as relevant and important as ever, both in Peter's life and in the lives of those who follow his adventures.
